Goldman talks Hollywood, economy

Says 'nobody knows anything' about Biz

When William Goldman said “nobody knows anything” about the movie business, everybody thought he had come up with a keen insight. Well, maybe he had, but his remark applies much more to the economy than to Hollywood.

The economy is broken, but the gurus will fix it, right? Wrong.

Britain’s template for rescuing its banks has only resulted in “shorn bank shares, shaven poll ratings and shredded nerves,” as The Economist reminded us this week. President Nicolas Sarkozy’s charisma in France has yielded only riots and growing unemployment. Poor little Iceland has basically gone belly up.

In the U.S., the Democrats’ solution is awash in entitlements and the Republicans want to convince us that only tax cuts will provide the magic stimulant. Some 150-plus economists signed a petition in Wednesday’s New York Times, paid for by the Cato Institute, reminding us that “more government spending by Hoover and Roosevelt did not pull the U.S. out of the Great Depression.” The economists argue that “a reduction in the burden of government” is the best policy.

So here’s the ultimate truth we have now learned: In point of fact, nobody knows anything.